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Pashvael
Pashvael is an elective monarchy ruled by an Emir. The Emir rules for life, when one Emir dies a new one is elected by the people. The last three Emirs have all come from the prestigious Yazdan family, which has made grooming new Emir's their stock-in-trade. Before Emir Sassan (the progenitor of the Yazdan line of kings) Pashvael was a poor collection of disparate cities clinging onto life at the edges of the Shastir Karbul. Since the advent of new mining and synthesis techniques for skybite, the strange metal that allows airships to fly—harvested from the eponymous Skybite Mountains, Pashvael has rapidly brought in outside wealth. With the unification of the cities under one banner during the reign of Emir Ramin (the first son of Sassan Yazdan) Pashvael started to gain influence, their airships quickly becoming a necessary component of trade for their neighboring countries, and near the end of his rule, the known world. With the recent election of the charismatic Emir Darius (second son of Ramin Yazdan) Pashvael is on the brink of becoming an influential world power. Despite it's wealth, areas of Pashvael still exist in relative poverty. Life in the Glistening Cities is hard and life outside in the desert is even harder. Yet Pashvael is a gleaming beacon for those with nothing. Water flows freely in the cities thanks to the Sand Priests and those without may go to the temples to receive a hearty, yet simple, meal at the temples at morning and night. Many poor make the pilgrimage to Pashvael in the hopes of becoming shipwrights, miners, or even traders. Young children native to the desert often grow up dreaming of becoming a desert guide or joining a ships crew. Near everyone in Pashvael is dreaming of a better life, or working their hardest to make it happen. It's a good place to do so, guides and shipmates are paid based on the danger they face, the risks are high and many die before they even have a chance to learn the trade. Those that make it long enough to learn how to avoid the dangers are paid handsomely for their skill. Those who choose to work in the mines and shipyards are paid based on how grueling the work is. A man can trade the sweat of his brow in his early years for the ability to relax in comfort at the end of his life. Miners in Pashvael are treated better than almost anywhere in the world due to the difficulty of mining denisith ore (the naturally occurring form of skybite) and the every expanding need for more miners; indeed anyone with a laborers credentials can go to the temples twice a month for a free healing by the Sand Priests. It is thanks to the shrewd leadership and policies of the Yazdan family and the generosity of the Sand Priests that Pashvael can flourish. Both hold themselves accountable to the people. The Emirs because they are elected by popular vote—though the still living memory of the lynching of the old royal line back when Pashvael was a hereditary monarchy might have something to do with it. The Sand Priests do so because their holy power literally comes from the goodwill of their believers.